Three Environmental Advocacy Organizations Collaborate to Release Model Municipal Ordinance on Advancing Community Composting

The Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR), the National Resource Defense Council (NRDC) and the Environmental Law Institute (ELI) have collaborated to release the Model Municipal Ordinance on Community Composting. This new tool can help legislators and municipalities craft regulations that bolster the growth and operations of community composters. By supporting community composters with strong legislation, local governments can work toward a community-based, circular economy where community waste turns into community resources.
 
The Model defines community composting as composting operations that “source organic material locally, distribute most or all of the compost locally or use most or all of the compost on local soils, and typically engage the community in the composting process; occupy a smaller operational area and process substantially less organic material than industrial composting; and do not engage in on-farm composting (unless on an urban farm or in a community garden)” (ILSR, NRDC, ELI, 2025). The Model focuses on composting operations that fall within this definition.
 
The USCC released our Model Compost Rules Template originally in 2012, with a major update completed in 2021. The update included feedback from regulators in 29 states and dedicated work from a focus group of stakeholders. This document is useful for municipalities crafting regulations for small- to industrial-sized commercial composting facilities. Several U.S. states (including Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee) have used or are using this template to update their compost permitting regulations. Both the USCC’s Model Compost Rules Template and the new Model Municipal Ordinance on Community Composting are powerful tools for the compost industry to utilize in expanding composting throughout the US.